What is the role of fat in pregnant women on fetal development?

It is important for pregnant women to look at their weight before pregnancy and during pregnancy. Weight in pregnant women has an effect on the growth and development of your prospective baby. By regulating weight, it is hoped that a healthier pregnancy can be lived.

For pregnant women who are too thin, it is necessary to increase the portion of food to gain weight. Weight gain throughout pregnancy is necessary to prevent preterm birth and low birth weight. However, the numbers need not be excessive. It is feared that excessive weight gain will result in obesity in pregnant women.

The assumption that a pregnant woman's stomach that looks small indicates that the fetus in the womb cannot grow properly, is actually not true. This is the reason pregnant women want to gain excess weight. It is not uncommon for pregnant women to overeat so that their stomachs get bigger. In fact, the stomach that looks small is caused by a thin layer of fat on the mother's abdominal wall and not due to disturbed fetal growth.

Likewise, when your stomach is enlarged, it is a layer of fat in the wall of the mother's stomach that is enlarged, not the fetus. Apart from weight gain, fetal growth is actually relatively the same in all pregnant women in the first trimester until towards the end of the second trimester. Except in special cases, for example in pregnant women who have certain chronic diseases.

Effect of fat in pregnant women on fetal development

Fat in pregnant women plays an important role. The fat that increases with weight gain during pregnancy is intended for the fetus, placenta, and amniotic fluid.

While the rest is allocated for the growing uterine muscles, breast tissue, increased blood volume, extracellular fluids, and fat storage for pregnant women as preparation for breastfeeding.

In addition, pregnant women store large amounts of body fat in normal pregnancy to meet the energy needs of both the mother and the fetus.

However, fat can interfere with fetal development if the amount is excessive. Pregnant women who have excess fat or are obese can increase complications that also affect the unborn baby. Here are the risks of excess fat in pregnant women.

1. Macrosomia

Pregnant women who are obese have a high risk of giving birth to large babies or what is commonly known as macrosomia. Babies are said to be large or have excess body weight if their weight has reached more than 4,000 grams.

Macrosomia can also increase the risk of developing it neural tube defects (birth defects caused by incomplete development of the brain and spine).

Babies who are born big can complicate the delivery process. If you want to give birth vaginally, of course, it will be a problem if the baby is too big to fit through the birth canal.

Babies with macrosomia are also at risk for low blood sugar levels. In addition, these babies are also more at risk for obesity later in life and / or metabolic syndrome.

2. Gestational diabetes

Pregnant women who are overweight will be prone to gestational diabetes, which is high levels of glucose (sugar) during pregnancy. This often occurs in the last half of the gestation period.

Gestational diabetes is caused by a buildup of fat levels in pregnant women, which causes the absorption of sugar levels in the body to decrease. Diabetes experienced by pregnant women can have a direct impact on fetal development because high blood sugar levels in the mother can cause blood sugar levels in the baby to increase as well.

This is certainly not good for the baby's overall health. In this case, the baby is often born with a high body weight, which also affects the birth process. Diabetes can also increase the mother's risk of preeclampsia in the last stages of pregnancy.

3. Preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a condition in which pregnant women experience high blood pressure, even though they previously did not have a history of hypertension. In addition, preeclampsia is also characterized by increased protein content in the body.

Preeclampsia can cause the placenta to not get enough blood flow, which should flow to the fetus as well. This can cause various problems with the growth and development of the fetus, because the fetus does not get enough food from the mother.

Problems that often arise in the fetus are low birth weight and premature birth, so the baby must be delivered immediately before the blood pressure gets higher. It can also lead to growth problems when the child is born, such as impaired cognitive function and vision and hearing problems in children.